Death in Halkeginia
by AbaddontheDevourer
Summary: There are many MOD Harry summoning story's in this category. In this one Louise summons a Harry who is the personification of Death itself. Godlike!Harry.
1. Chapter 1: The Summoning

AN: I own neither Harry Potter nor Zero no Tsukaima

Death was bored.

No it wasn't just a little bored, he was really bored.

And he was no longer allowed to destroy civilizations and realities on a whim after Fate spent a year ranting at him.

It had been countless millennia since the system he had taken over from his predecessor required his direct intervention, and in that time he had begun to despise the normalcy that his existence had become.

Collect the Hallowes they said. Become the Master of Death she said. No where did they say that he had to put up with an eternity of boredom.

At times like these he liked to vent by summoning up a specter of Dumbledore and repeatedly punching it. In the face. Hard.

It was all because of Dumbledore's manipulations. Compared to her company for eternity the Dursley's were a gadfly. He had mostly gotten over his hatred for them as he had laughed to himself with a bowl of popcorn as he watched how they ruined their lives throughout the multiverse. Rare was the time when he had seen them actually by productive members of society. Their fate was always bad, and it was because of this that he didn't prank Fate as much as he should.

But no it was all because of Dumbledore that he had gotten _**HER**_ as a companion.

She never left him alone, trailing after him like a lost puppy! And no matter what he did he couldn't get rid of her.

 _I mean sure she's absolutely breathtaking (no pun intended) and able to assume whatever form she wishes but still there's a limit!_ He couldn't actually kill his bizarrely cheerful partner after all it was impossible to kill Death.

Chaining her up was one of the worst (or best) mistakes of his existence. Awakening to her masochistic urges, for over almost a thousand years she had enjoyed wearing a spiked collar with his name engraved on it as well as offering him her leash and asking to be walked. Her face would always get flushed as she hung on his every word, as he ordered her around.

It may have been a hormonal teens wet dream, but it (eventually) got old.

Not to mention the heckling he got from other Aspects. He grumbled to himself, as he viciously swiped the air dispelling several monitors he used to watch everything in the infinite multiverse. With his movements his current bed partner began to stir.

"Go back to bed." She groaned blindly groping for a pillow which she used to hit him.

"I'm bored." He said simply, getting off the bed as he began pacing.

"What time is it?" She groaned, pulling the covers up higher. Weird that she would be cold when she controlled the temperature of the room.

"Shut up you two." His other bed partner stirred.

"Where's Death?" His first bedmate asked, getting up.

"Where do you think Sin?" He asked sarcastically, yanking the covers off to see his partner/slave still chained at the foot of the bed. "Whatever you do don't remove the gag. I don't want to hear her voice at the moment."

"Mumble, mumble, mumble." His ever happy partner said into her gag, as he suppressed the urge to facepalm.

"What the hell happened last night Chaos?" Sin asked her form right now being that of Lust.

"Everything's fuzzy at the moment." Chaos said snuggling her face deeper into her pillow.

"I remember the three of us did something bad."

"Sin everything you do is bad. Teaming up with Chaos just exacerbates the problem." He sighed.

He felt her arms wrapping around his back. "I'm a naughty girl, but you love me because of it." She teased.

Before he could say anything, the walls around the room began to crack and tear, as if a great force were bearing down upon it. "I guess we know what we did last night."

"HARRY JAMES POTTER!" "DEATH!" "CHAOS!" Two different females and one male voice called out in rage.

"Gotta go." Chaos said jumping out of bed, donning her clothes with a snap of her fingers and fleeing the room as her angry counterpart began chasing her out the room.

"Jeez those two antics never get old." He gave in to the urge to facepalm. The walls were just about to break down, already there had been enough of an opening for Order to invade and for Chaos to flee.

"Kukuku." Sin giggled. "For once it's not me that they're all after."

"That's because everyone knows you've always got a hand in whatever bad happens." He snorted, quickly putting on his own clothes, and getting ready to run. Life and Fate were closing in and he get to the other side of the Infinite Realm as quickly as possible.

It was a futile attempt as the other two females in his life smashed through the barriers that protected his realm. "YOU BASTARD!" Fate cried, pouncing from the sky, her weight driving him to the floor as she began to choke him Simpsons style. "YOU ATE ALL MY ICE CREAM!" She began shaking him, hitting his head against the marble floor. "MY ENTIRE SUPPLY OF B&J'S CANNOLI, CHERRY GARCIA AND FOSSIL FUEL! LIMITED EDITION FLAVORS THAT I HAVE NO CHANCE OF GETTING AGAIN SINCE WE'RE RESTRICTED FROM INTERFERING WITH THE MORTAL PLANE. IF IT WASN'T IMPOSSIBLE TO KILL YOU I'D PUT YOU THROUGH A THOUSAND DEATHS! MAYBE I'LL DO IT ANYWAY JUST TO SEE IF I CAN GET LUCKY AND YOU'LL FADE FOR A MILLENIA. WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF BASTARD?"

"Idiot." Life whispered low enough for only her and Sin to hear, then loudly said. "Fate he can't hear you or talk considering you knocked him out after the second hit."

A lightbulb went off in her head, as she dropped her quarry to the ground, before stepping away from his still moving body. Fixing her black dress with galaxies sewn into the fabric, she conjured a bath filled with ice water. "This'll teach the bastard." Pulling a comical rope the entire tub turned and dumped it's frigid contents on Death.

He snapped back to life quickly, sputter and cursing as he glared at his foe. "What the hell was that for?"

"You invaded my domain last night, tied me up, then proceeded to eat all of my ice cream in front of me while taunting me with it. Dozens of discontinued flavors impossible for me to get again, devoured. Now what am I supposed to eat when the entire multiverse goes screwy and I have to fix the mess."

"Maybe you should take better care in managing your domain." Sin snarked, earning herself a glare from Fate.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" She asked.

"Do you know what makes the ice cream, or better yet anything you eat, taste better?" _Pause for dramatic effect, smile like a bastard_. "When it's not yours and when it's free."

Fate roared in anger, moving to strangle him once more, only to be stopped by Life grabbing her ponytail, shaking her head. "This is why you brought me here, to keep you calm and focused. Choking him was bad enough before no need to continue." Fate stopped, though she still looked like she wanted to murder Death. "And you." She glared, her gaze boring into his. "These sort of actions cannot be tolerated."

At the same time she made a note to check her own dwindling sweets supply, and make sure that no one had taken anything. Even though she may be the Aspect of Life if someone touched her Mars Bars, there'd be a reckoning like no other. Taking the opportunity to sneak away, Sin did so, ready to cause some more havoc.

Quicker than any of them could react, Fate had already brought her hands up and with a snarl, tore the realm asunder. "Are you crazy?" He spat, grabbing onto something to anchor himself from being dragged into the howling portal. He could hear a voice coming from the other side.

"My servant that existed somewhere in this vast universe, my divine, beautiful, wise, powerful servant, heed my call, I wish from very bottom of my heart and add to my guidance and appear!" Over and over the words repeated themselves, a siren's call to him.

"HAHAHAHA!" Fate cackled, "Know my pain! Feel the Burn!" Wiggling out of Life's grip she began to be drawn towards the portal at high speeds. With graceful movements that would cause envy in even the most talented of dancers and gymnasts, she maneuvered herself to where he was gripping a cabinet, and kicked him right under the chin.

His jaw clacked shut, as he barely withdrew his tongue from being chopped off. Pain shot through his body, as he lost strength in his arms, long enough to let go of the cabinet and be sucked into the portal.

Waving her hand once more, she sealed the abyssal maw behind him. letting loose another mad laugh. "That'll teach him a lesson."

"Seriously what's with you two? I know it's not hatred, so tell me what's with all the sexual tension between you two?" Life's normally stoic expression broke when she saw her fellow Aspect trip over the flat ground, a small smile gracing her features that only her Sister Death saw.

Waving her hand towards her still chained counterpart, the first words to come out of her mouth were not thanks, nor asking where her partner was sent off to, but her screaming out "SHE'S A TSUNDERE!" The gag was quickly put back in, rubbing her temples as she felt a headache forming. A Millenia with her and she still hadn't gotten used to her antics.

"By the way Fate, where did you send him?" Life asked.

The color suddenly drained from Fate's face, as she suddenly remembered. "I forgot to set a destination."

"So we have an omnipotent Aspect floating around the multiverse?" Life, raised an eyebrow as her fellow Aspect began sweating bullets. "I'm taking all your sweets and cutting you off from getting any for the next ten thousand years."

 _The Council's just going to love this._ Life swore, as she walked away from her wailing friend. Neither Life nor Fate bothered to remember that Death was still chained and gagged.

* * *

Meanwhile Sin had stealthily broken into Life's realm and was making quick work of stealing all of her fellow Aspect's candy.

"Huh what do you know. Death was right, they do taste better." She grinned biting off another chunk of a Mars Bar. "Now to hide these in Time's realm."

Death may not be here right now but she'd continue to mess with everyone in his place. Chaos would be so proud.

* * *

As the three aspects separated, Harry was freefalling through the infinite multiverse. He had barely any control over his movements, though he did his best to avoid the voice that kept trying to summon him. Every now and then he would feel their power try to hook into him, but he swatted it away every time. Falling and falling, that's all he did, where his exit was he had no idea since it had been Fate that threw him into the portal. Time passed, how long he had no idea, but the monotony of falling was beginning to wear on his nerves once more. He sound found himself bored again, his only consolation being the fact that his partner wasn't here to bother him with pointless questions. No doubt if she were here, all he'd here was a constant stream of "are we there yet."

Just as he was about to close his eyes and attempt to fall asleep, a hand darted out into the endless chasm and snagged the back of his shirt. "Oooof." He exclaimed feeling the air whoosh out of him. Casting an annoyed eye back towards his rescue, he sighed. "What is it with the women I know and choking me?"

"Not woman." The 'person' who caught him said, her apathetic mask never breaking. "Anthropomorphic personification of an Aspect of Existence."

"Of course." He deadpanned, suppressing a sigh. It seemed like that was something that was becoming a habit. Jotting a mental note down he swore to work on that in the future. "Hello Magic."

"Need favor." Magic said, her eyes boring into his back, as he squirmed in discomfort.

"What?" He asked in surprise. No one came to him asking favors, as deal with the Devil was putting it mildly. He'd been accused of being a complete and total asshole before when it came to making contracts as he constantly maneuvered to get the better end of the deal. He liked Magic though, still grateful for giving him powers while still mortal, therefore he'd be as fair as possible.

"Favor." She repeated, reaching into her robe and withdrawing an old fashioned picture. "Protect." Taking the picture from her he saw a young girl no older than 14 with pink hair and brown eyes. "Louise de La Valliere."

"For how long?" He asked.

"Till death." Magic said, he nodded. Mortal lifespans went by in the blink of an eye.

"Easy enough favor." He responded. "But where is she?"

Instead of responding, Magic simply pointed with her finger a shimmering portal appearing. The voice grew louder.

"I'm not going to be her familiar." He said bluntly.

"Contract." Magic said cocking her arm back.

"You can't be serious?!" He yelled, struggling to escape her grasp. It wasn't because he was going to make a contract with a mortal, but the fact that she was about to throw him shot put style.

"Don't squirm. Might miss." She said, though nothing touched her face he swore he could hear the amusement in her voice. With that she threw him, he soared like a missile, spinning, as he swore like a sailor.

"DAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMMMMMMNNNNNNNNNNNNN" He screamed entering the portal, only to find himself free falling, the ground rapidly approaching. Twisting himself so that he was parallel to the ground and opening his arms and legs to help slow himself down. "Arastel!" He called summoning his other companion. Hoping that he would get here in time for me not to splatter across the dimensional walls.

Thankfully the portal was still open, and a massive black dragon dove down towards him. Opening its wings to level off, he landed on its head. "Bring us down." He said, casting a sticking charm to the bottom of his boots so that he wouldn't fall off. If he was being summoned he'd sure as hell make an entrance.

* * *

Today was the Springtime Summoning Ritual, and Louise was getting more and more nervous as her turn approached. Today was her last chance to prove to everyone that she wasn't a Zero. If she failed never mind being expelled from the Academy, her mother would probably disown her.

"Congratulations Miss Zerbst, a fire salamander from the Fire mountains of Germania." Professor Colbert said praising the dark skinned young woman on a successful summoning.

"He matches perfectly with my runic name." Kirche gushed, placing a kiss on her familiar to complete the ritual. "Oh my beautiful Flame."

"Tch." Louise spat, her dislike for the Zerbst overriding her nervousness. Even she would admit that the salamander was a powerful and useful familiar capable of giving its master rare reagents from its body.

Guiche followed after Kirche summoning an Earth Mole...understandable.

Montmorency summoned a Frog...typical.

Typical familiars followed, dogs, cats, owls, snakes, one person even summoned a bugbear, an uncommon at best familiar.

Then she went. Tabitha. She had never heard the quiet girl utter so many words at one time.

"A DRAGON!" Most of the class exclaimed, seeing the blue and white familiar appear from the portal. Looking up for just a moment as her familiar appeared she completed the contract and immediately buried her nose back into the novel. They walked to the side, and Louise couldn't help but gulp, she was next.

"Is that everyone?" Professor Colbert asked.

"No Professor," a certain Germanian announced. "The Zero still has to go."

"Please as if Louis could summon something." Montmorency said.

"Shut up." Louise cried, stamping her foot. "Mind your own business! I'm going to summon the most powerful familiar, then I'll show you how wrong it was to mock me all these years."

"Yeah right." One person in the back said.

"I'm absolutely quivering in my boots." Another replied sarcastically. The entire class laughed, as Louise shook in both rage and humiliation. Just as she was about to draw her wand and lash out, Professor Colbert decided to intervene.

"Now, now class, the Summoning Ritual is a sacred rite, and should be conducted with a solemn air." He said. "Now please if you would Miss Valliere, I would like to finish this as soon as possible."

Glaring at her classmates, she stepped towards the circle, ready to call her destined partner. "My servant that existed somewhere in this vast universe, my divine, beautiful, wise, powerful servant, heed my call, I wish from very bottom of my heart and add to my guidance and appear!"

"Please work." She prayed. A portal appeared, and she could feel as the entire class as one took a breath. They waited with drawn breath wondering what the Zero could summon. And waited. Waited some more. Until finally someone called out.

"You're a failure!" The class took that as a sign, and began chanting, "Failure."

She could feel tears begin to form, but refused to give them the satisfaction of seeing her cry. "I must say that this is certainly the longest summoning I've ever heard of." Colbert said, rubbing his chin. "The fact that there is a portal, means that there is something it's connected to."

His words quieted the class, as Kirche asked. "So what does this mean?"

"If I had to take a guess, Louise is so bad that even her familiar doesn't want to associate with her. Smart move, it'd probably be the laughingstock of its kind if it did." Guiche said setting off another round of laughter.

"Grrrrr." Louise growled, her jaw clenched in anger. She felt her magic slip loose of her control, the portal burning white as it drew more and more of her power.

"Look out!" Montmorency shouted, running for cover. She didn't get very far, as the portal let loose a violent wave of magic that sent everyone flying back.

"Is everyone alright?" Professor Colbert asked, pulling himself up.

"Louise the Zero." Kirche screamed. "We should've known things were going too good when it didn't explode." Pointing out the deep crater where the summoning circle had been centered. "You can't even use magic properly, why don't you just drop out already."

"As expected of the Zero, the only thing she can do is fail so horribly her spells explode." Montmorency laughed, dusting herself off.

"SHUT UP!" Louise screamed, not even bothering to hide the tears in her eyes. "MY SERVANT THAT EXISTS SOMEWHERE IN THIS VAST UNIVERSE, MY DIVINE, BEAUTIFUL, WISE, POWERFUL SERVANT, HEED MY CALL, I WISH FROM THE VERY BOTTOM OF MY HEART AND ADD TO MY GUIDANCE AND APPEAR!"

"MY SERVANT THAT EXISTS SOMEWHERE IN THIS VAST UNIVERSE, MY DIVINE, BEAUTIFUL, WISE, POWERFUL SERVANT, HEED MY CALL, I WISH FROM THE VERY BOTTOM OF MY HEART AND ADD TO MY GUIDANCE AND APPEAR!"

"MY SERVANT THAT EXISTS SOMEWHERE IN THIS VAST UNIVERSE, MY DIVINE, BEAUTIFUL, WISE, POWERFUL SERVANT, HEED MY CALL, I WISH FROM THE VERY BOTTOM OF MY HEART AND ADD TO MY GUIDANCE AND APPEAR!"

Over and over she called, until she finally felt Professor Colbert's hand on her shoulder, turning she saw him shaking his head. "That's enough Miss Valliere. I'm sorry to say that you have failed to summon a familiar and thus your fate now lies in the hands of the headmaster."

"Just expel her already." Someone jeered.

"My servant that exists somewhere in this vast universe, my divine, beautiful, wise, powerful servant, heed my call, I wish from the very bottom of my heart and add to my guidance and appear!" She cried.

A crack of thunder, drew everyone's attention towards the sky. The skies began to darken, as a gaping emerald portal appeared in the Heavens. The winds began to swirl, the portal, the eye of a fierce hurricane. Temperatures began to plummet as a dread chill sent shivers through everyone. Every familiar and every animal began screaming in terror, trying to drag their master's away. They could feel what was coming, and knew that they needed to flee. At the same time they knew that there was no point in running. Death takes all, as the idea of immortality was nothing more than a fallacy.

From the portal a jet black dragon appeared. Larger than even the largest airship, it's glowing red eyes glared at them as it rapidly approached the ground, massive wings sending gale force winds towards them. No one could remain on their feet, some were even blown back into the walls, as the nightmare made flesh landed, sending shockwaves through the courtyard. It was so large that it wasn't even able to fit in the spacious courtyard, square-mage reinforced walls crumbled under the slightest touch, as its tail swept them aside.

By this time, every member of the faculty and student body had flooded the courtyard, wondering what was going on. All could feel the sheer power that radiated from the beast, caused some to wet themselves in fear. The more powerful and battle hardened gave in to their instinct as they launched powerful magics towards this abomination. There was no way that this thing was natural, it couldn't exist! It's very existence was Death!

For Louise the appearance of the dragon sent shivers down her spine. This was her familiar? This ancient force made flesh? It's very size allowed it to crush castles underfoot, to sweep mountains away with a single gesture.

Dozens of spells, launched from triangle and square class mages shot towards the beast. Those who were watching knew that the amount of power fired could've destroyed armies, knew that there was no way the beast would be unscathed, but in their heart of hearts they also felt their own mortality. The dragon merely glanced at the spells, its eyes flaring crimson as it analyzed the attack, and created a counter. In the following moment a dozens of spells were fired by the dragon, the exact opposite of each of the spells the teachers launched.

Opposite forces collided, neutralizing one another in sparks, launching concussive waves that sent mortals airborne.

"Keep firing!" Professor Colbert screamed, every instinct telling him that the beast in from of them couldn't escape.

Students ran from the Academy, only to crash into a barrier. They banged on the invisible shield, cries of terror filling the sky. "The dragon can use magic?" One person said, whether it was a question or a statement Louise didn't know.

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" The dragon blasted, slamming one clawed limb on the ground. The earth shook, as massive pressure slammed into everyone driving them into the ground. They looked on up to see a figure standing atop the Dragon's head. The figure jumped off the Serpent's head, and landed deftly on his feet.

Louise could hear several of her female classmates and teachers gasping, and not from the force that pinned them to the ground. Not that she could blame them, the man that stood before them, certainly was handsome enough to take their breath away.

He had long black hair that just touched his shoulders, a circlet woven out of silver adorned his head. He wore a chainmail underlayer with a steel cuirass and pauldrons; cuisses, poleyns, greaves, and sabaton protected his lower body all made from the same black metal and trimmed in silver. Over the armor he wore a hooded and sleeveless open black robe that showed off powerful arms protected by vambraces. He was armed with a sword on his hip, and a spear in his left hand. It wasn't his arms, armor, or muscles that drew their breath but his eye, dark emeralds that seemed alight with an inner fire. While alight they also held a coldness to them, hinting at barely constrained power. His entire being screamed power authority, his orders absolute and to be carried out unquestioningly.

He took a single step and the air rippled in response, his gaze sweeping over them, causing them to squirm. They could feel their body's once more, the overwhelming pressure easing up and allowing them to stand albeit on shaky legs. Through it all no one even thought about reaching for their wands, not even to retrieve them as the Ancient Dragon stared at them menacingly. Thick smoke and sparks poured forth from its mouth as it readied itself to unleash its devastating breath.

"I who have ascended the mortal plane, descend once more in response to a summons. Summoner stand before me so that I may render judgment." He spoke softly, his voice easily carrying over the distance allowing all to hear him.

She felt hands on her as she was roughly shoved forward, tripping so that she was kneeling in front of him. She stared upwards into his eyes, terror gripping her heart preventing from speaking.

He merely lifted a brow, but that single action carried with it more weight than any royal command. The commanding nature of the act overrode some of the fear she felt, allowing her to stammer out an answer. "I summoned you here to be my familiar."

Though his facial expression didn't change, Louise could feel the full intensity of his gaze being leveled on her, and it took all of her will not to turn and flee. He reached into his pocket and withdrew a piece of parchment, staring at it intensely before switching his gaze back to her. He did this a few times, his brow furrowing, his lips drawn tight in what she could only think of as displeasure. "So you summoned me as a babysitter?" He drawled, the air crackling around him.

Her cheeks burned red, as she struggled to bite back a retort. Her only chance of being at continuing her training stood right in front of her. "I find myself sorely disappointed." He said copying his most hated rivals sneer, something that he perfected in the millennia since he last met the man. "Where is your spirit child? Why do you not fight back when I insult you?"

He sighed to himself, there were other way of protecting the girl and fulfilling Magic's favor without becoming this girl's familiar. "I refuse."

With those two words, history was made. A familiar refusing the contract with the one who summoned it! Everything about that went against everything they were taught, against everything that Brimir had stood for. It had always been a mage summoning their partner, the partner answering the summons and together forging a bond. Now this being spat on the tradition and refused to acknowledge her.

Anger seized her, not just for his refusal, but also for him spitting on her faith. She didn't know how, but her wand appeared in her hand and a spell empowered by her anger was already leaving the tip before she realized what she had done. A massive explosion, larger than any she had ever done before rocked the courtyard wrecking what little remained of its once pristine beauty.

When the smoke cleared no one was surprised to see the figure still standing there looking bored. "Is that it?" He asked, wiping some imaginary dust from his shoulders. She fell to her knees, completely exhausted. Moving back to Arastel he mounted his faithful familiar. "In one week I shall return. If you haven't sorted out your convictions and gained a backbone it shall be the last time you ever see me." With that Arastel took to the skies, but not before a beam of energy left the tip of the spear impacting the middle of the courtyard and repairing everything back to its pristine condition from the mighty walls, to people's clothing, to the last blade of grass.

When the dragon was finally a mere dot in the sky, the pressure that paralyzed them ceased, and everyone was finally able to breath a sigh of relief. They all had the same thought in their mind. _What in Brimir's name did Louise summon?_


	2. Chapter 2: Reactions

Chapter 2

Published 12-11-2015

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the lateness of this chapter but it's been a hectic time for me as finals approach. This is my last year as an undergraduate so I have plenty of things that need to be squared away before I'm thrown into the workforce full time. Monthly Chapters will resume so expect the next update to be around the first or second week of January. I also want to thank everyone who favorited, followed and left a review for this story. Compared to my other stories this has the most reviews per chapter. If you haven't already read it I highly recommend the story Harry Potter the Youngest Prodigy by Writer with Bad Grammar T-T. i have beta'd the first chapter and am waiting for it to be reposted and am currently cleaning up the second.

* * *

"So Boss, what's the deal?" Arastel asked once they gained enough height.

"Magic needed a favor. Supposed to protect that little girl." He responded stretching out. He rarely got to experience flying in the real world and it was one of his greatest regrets.

A deep rumbling could be felt underneath him, as Arastel laughed. "And you accepted?"

"Didn't have much choice. She had me by the collar, and if I didn't say yes I had a feeling she would've thrown me here anyways. This way I get a future favor out of her."

"Seriously Boss, the women you keep company." The ancient dragon drolled. "Violent lot with tempers that put my females to shame."

He groaned. "Don't remind me. I'm going to take this as a little vacation from the lot of them."

"Well if we're going to be here for any length of time best to get ourselves set up for comfort. And I'm hungry." Arastel pointed out.

"Since when do you need to eat?"

"This world isn't rich in power as the Endless Realm, I need to eat to keep up my strength. 2 dozen or so cattle should kept me fed for a week."

"2 dozen?" He deadpanned. "I think you're better off claiming a country and demanding tribute in exchange for not setting it aflame. It'd be cheaper on my wallet."

"Like you even have a wallet." Arastel snorted. "You can just wiggle your fingers and a pile of gold appears."

"True." He nodded. "By the way, what do you want to do about those dragons that are following us?"

Arastel twisted, turning 180 degrees with ease so that he was facing the oncoming dragons. Sucking in air, smoke and sparks poured from his mouth as he let loose a wave of fire capable of turning anything it touched to ash no matter the protections. Luckily for the other Riders Arastel had aimed high so none were injured. He roared, the sound shaking the earth itself, and the other dragons turned, defying their masters to flee. "Huh." Harry grunted. "I thought I'd be eating BBQ tonight."

"Please, you don't know where they've been."

"Some of them were quite plump and I've heard dragon tastes pretty good if not a little gamey." He commented. "Either way let's head North East I thought I saw a forest and some farms. If we can't convince some of the farmers to part with their cattle I'm sure we could find you something to eat in the forest itself."

"And what do you plan on doing afterwards?"

"I really don't know. But now that I have some free time I always wanted to learn how to blow glass and make beer." He said rubbing his chin. "First though we need a place large enough for us."

* * *

Back at Tristain's Royal Academy, water mages were going over the students with a fine tooth comb, looking for any injuries that might have been sustained from the Black Dragon's appearance.

As the students were being looked over an aura of dread and fear smothered any other thoughts. Each of them had seen the power that the Black Dragon and its rider had wielded, and afterwards would be writing to their families to appraise them of the 'Beast' as they were being called.

In a separate part of the Academy a meeting was being held by all the faculty to discuss the return of the 'Beast' in a week.

"We need to call in the Army." Professor Chevreuse exclaimed, rubbing her hands together. She had been nervous before as this had been her first week teaching, and now after the Dragon she couldn't stop herself from shaking. _Why didn't I listen to my parents and settle down with that nice Count._ She thought to herself. If she had she wouldn't have become a nervous wreck.

"And what do you expect them to do?" Professor Guiteau, an elderly triangle wind mage asked. "We had 10 triangle class mages, 2 square class, and over a dozen line and dot mages firing spells at that beast, and it countered everything. If you put the Army in front of it all you're going to end up with is barbeque."

"It must have a weakness!" Professor Chevreuse cried. "Surely there's something within the Fenrir Library that would hint at it."

Colbert shook his head. "I've spent many hours down in Fenrir just browsing the scrolls, never before have I come across anything like that Dragon. I'm not saying that it doesn't exist but the sheer size of the library would make it almost impossible to find if we didn't know exactly what we were looking for."

"Nevermind the Dragon for a moment, we know that it is already a serious threat, what concerns me is the rider." Secretary Longueville said. "That person must be a mage of the highest order in order to have bonded with such a creature."

"He certainly was breathtaking." One of the female teachers sighed. The double meaning of her words was not lost as most of the female teachers and the secretary turned away with flush faces. "You know he reminds me of those villains from those romance novels you see the noble girls reading. Not the hero, but the dashing villain that you secretly root for because there's something about roguish and strong men. The ones that your mother told you not to bring home and the ones that made your father keep his wand-sword at the ready."

"Ahem. It certainly is a unique situation we find ourselves in." Old Osmond said stroking his long white beard, diverting the conversation back to the imminent danger that the Academy was facing. "Let's see if we can put together a timeline and sort out whatever facts we can about the mysterious duo."

"Well Ms. Valliere attempted to use a modified version of the Summoning Ritual."

"Modified? How?" Osmond asked, figuring the key may be in the young Valliere's wording.

"Hmmm." Colbert thought for a moment before writing the chant down on a piece of paper. "I'm pretty sure that this is it."

The paper was passed amongst the teachers who studied it for a moment before passing it along. When it finally got to Osmond, he read it, his eyes widening, a tiny bit. "I see. I'm not too sure what Ms. Valliere did."

"Ms. Valliere while her practical skills are abysmal is almost a genius at theoretical knowledge. It's possible she created this chant by combining several ones used throughout history. Or she may have mistranslated a version used by another country." Professor Chevreuse offered.

"In all likelihood the portal that appeared above the Academy was a result of her modified familiar summoning ritual. Therefore there's a strong possibility that the Dragon Knight that appeared is in fact Ms. Valliere's familiar."

"While I agree with your assessment, I feel I must once more point out strength of that Knight. Even if Ms. Valliere were to bond with it, she would have absolutely no way of controlling it. There's strong evidence that if a Mage bonds with a creature stronger in will than it than it is not the Mage that becomes the master but the creature. This is also why summoned familiars are almost always young creatures. I shudder to think of the consequences of her bonding with this knight because I have no doubt in my mind that it is much stronger than her." Professor Guiteau said.

"No doubt, the magic that the Knight used is certainly unlike any that we used, if anything it reminds me of the Elves' Firstborn Magic, though I still for the life of me can't figure out how it restored everyone's clothing. Not to mention how it restored all the damage done. Such a spell would've left even a group of skilled triangle class and square class mages exhausted not to mention unable to perform any magic for several days."

"Is anyone else thinking about the political nightmare that this is going to cause?" Ms. Longueville asked. "Mr. Valliere summoned a noble from another country, and judging by their strength they aren't a minor one that would go unnoticed. That man is most likely a Chevalier. When a military asset of that strength goes missing the country is going to do all it can to recover the person."

"We need more information." Osmond said gravelly. "From now until that beast returns, classes will be cancelled. Professor Chevreuse, Professor Guiteau, take the first years students and go through the Fenrir Library. Look for anything that might help. Colbert take the remaining students and begin laying down defenses, we need to be prepared for an attack. Ms. Longueville get me a meeting with the Queen and Princess tell them it's an emergency, then I want you to work out the logistics in having to transport the entire student population to safety. Let's say that the immediate danger zone is 10 miles around the Academy, secondary 15, and safety at 30. I want to get them to the secondary zone the day of the battle."

"It looks like you won't be needing to make an appointment at all." Professor Colbert said grimly. "Tristain's Dragon Knights have just crash landed in the courtyard, and they look pretty shaken up."

Moving with speed unheard of for a man his age, Osmond pretty much teleported to the courtyard leaving his younger colleagues huffing and puffing in an attempt to catch up. "Marquis Leonide." He greeted.

The lead dragon knight, nodded in greeting, before he began shouting orders. Half the knights ran for the kitchens returning minutes laters with casks of wine. Another group came back with a large trough, that they poured the wine into. Immediately the assembled dragons made a break for the liquor jostling each other as they drank. The same group that had brought the wine came back leading several cattle fit to be slaughtered in an attempt to calm their mounts down.

After a dozen or so minutes, things calmed down. The dragons were no longer jumping at shadows, and their riders no longer ready to faint in terror. No doubt due to the liquid courage found in the barrels.

"Philippe." Osmond said placing a steadying hand on the young man's shoulder. "What happened?"

"A demon." The young man stammered. "It flew right over the castle, my squad was dispatched with chasing it down. We had almost caught up with it when it turned around and let loose a blast of flames. Heat so strong that we felt like we were being cooked alive even though we were untouched. Then it roared. How does one begin to describe that sound? Terror is an understatement. Hearing it was like hearing one's death knell. I could feel my death closing in, I knew it would be futile to struggle, my body and those of my men freezing as we recognized our impending doom. I feel like the only reason we are still alive is because of our mounts. They immediately turned around and made a break for it, and thank Brimir that it didn't pursue us."

"Where did it come from?" One of the knights stammered, rubbing his hand up and down his mount to keep it calm.

"That's a discussion that the Queen and Princess need to be present for." Osmond said grimly. "Are your mounts ready to fly?"

"Not a chance." Philippe said shaking his head. "Everyone's pretty spooked, and I don't know how long it'll be before they fully recover."

"Then we do this the old fashioned way." Colbert said resolutely, secretly happy that he wouldn't have to ride atop a dragon. "To the stables." A short walk and they arrived to see several of the horses moving in terror, while some were absolutely petrified. "This is getting ridiculous."

Those with him couldn't help but agree. If things continued like this then they'd have no defense when the beast returns. "Groomsmen." Osmond called.

"No." The man answered, moving about his work calming the horses.

"What do you mean no?" Philippe asked, outraged. How dare the man speak to a noble like that.

"I mean no. I don't have enough horses to fasten to a carriage. If you're going anywhere you're doing it bareback. I've got two horses capable of moving, the rest are all spooked. Two of our finer mounts broke free of their restraints and fled their stalls. Last we saw they were headed into the forest. Then we have one horse that broke it's leg and we're going to have to put down."

Osmond nodded, replacing those horses were going to get expensive. "Jean I'll ride with Philippe, you take the other mount." The groomsmen handed them a pair of bridles and after directing them to the right stall left to take care of his charges.

"When's the last time you rode a horse?" Jean asked, already feeling the discomfort, he knew he was going to hurt tomorrow. At this point it was a tossup between which he hated more at the moment, flying or riding bareback.

"Not since I was a boy." Osmond said glumly, staring the evil looking stallion in the face. This was going to hurt, especially at his age.

"Bet none of you ever rode without a saddle before." Philippe said, used to hard riding from his time in the army. Mounting up, he joked, "keep your hands from wandering old man."

"Pssh. You're neither beautiful nor a woman."

Smirking in response he lightly tapped his heels into the horse's flank as he maneuvered them into the road, Jean following closely behind. "5 miles to the capital. We can cover that distance in about half an hour if we keep the horses at a canter."

"And if we gallop?" Jean asked.

Both Philippe and Osmond shot him dark looks. "You really expect us to gallop bareback with inexperienced riders?"

Pace set, the rest of the trip past by quietly as each man ordered his thoughts so that they may properly present them to the Queen and Princess when they arrive. Arriving at the gates of the Palace they were immediately stopped as dozens of guards moved to surround them with halberd at the ready.

"Identify yourselves." The lead man, a sergeant by his insignia demanded. They gave their identities as well as showing their rings as proof. What should've been a formality turned into a long drawn out process as it was confirmed multiple times with different people. The entire castle was on a war footing and no one was being given easy access to the Royal Family. After about an hour of checks being surrounded by sharpened steel, they were let through the main gate, where they met Agnes Chevalier de Milan, Captain of the Musketeers and the Princess' bodyguard.

"Gentlemen."

"Captain." "Chevalier." ""Agnes." The three greeted her.

"Marquis Leonide." Agnes said. "Your father will be happy to hear that you're safe."

"Father's here?" He said dumbfounded. What would his father be doing here?

Agnes nodded. "He was meeting with the Princess about allocating some funding to help the peasants who are crossing the border, fleeing the Albion civil war. They had just sat down when the event happened."

As she was speaking, she led them through the maze of hallways made to disorient an attacking force. Arriving at a door, she paused, they could hear yelling on the other side. "Stay calm. Tensions are running high enough as it is, we don't need it coming to blows." She warned. With that said she pushed the doors open, and she had to duck as a paperweight was thrown into the door.

"That won't work you damned fool!" General Gramont yelled jabbing a meaty finger into his fellow general's chest. Peeking from behind Agnes they saw that the Great Hall which would normally house petitioners had been turned into a makeshift war room with a large table dominating the center of the room. A detailed map of Tristain and another map showing the surrounding countries were laid out and small colored clay pieces laid out.

"Hem. Hem" She cleared her throat, the sound drawing everyone's attention to her. "Presenting Marquis Leonide, Headmaster Osmond, and Professor Jean Colbert."

"Philippe." An elderly man said happily.

"Hello father." Philippe said shooting him a reassuring if not tired smile

"Osmond, Jean. What the devil's going on?" Gramont asked. "I've been getting panicked reports telling me everything from we're under attack, to civil unrest because Brimir decided to streak in the middle of La Rochelle. There have been sightings of a massive black dragon capable of wiping out castles that they're claiming was sent by Brimir to bring about the apocalypse because of some sort of transgression. The last thing we need is for the Papacy to get word of that, and declare an Inquisition or even worse a Crusade."

"Gentlemen." Osmond said. "Some protocol and decorum please." Turning he approached the Royal family and bowed low, Jean and Philippe kneeling. "Your Highness. My Princess."

Queen Marianne and Princess Henrietta greeted him with a nod, before turning their attention back to the maps. "Our top priority is the protection of our people." Henrietta said. "With that being said, I need to know our current readiness."

"Princess if I may. The information we bring from the Academy, is imperative to any defensive stratagem you are thinking of." Osmond said, and after seeing her nod began laying down the facts about the summoning as well as warning of its return.

Once he was finished Philippe followed reporting his encounter with the beast as well as the results. When they had both finished they saw the effect their words had on the Generals as well as the Royal family. If their deathly pallor was anything to go by, things were dire indeed. Two of the generals reached into their military jackets and pulled out flasks, and after taking a long drink passed it to their comrades. Even the princess took a small sip of the revitalizing brandy. "So in summary we're fighting a dragon larger than any known species, whose size allows it to destroy castles with ease. This dragon is also capable of using magic, releases some sort of paralyzing fear aura, and is capable of neutralizing magical attacks by releasing the opposite element." Seeing the nods from those assembled before her, she took a second sip from the flask longer than the previous one. "What do we do?"

"We have students scouring the Fenrir Library looking for any references or texts that could help us, but I doubt they'll find anything in time. Other students have begun laying down traps and defenses as best they can, and finally a third group of students are preparing the supplies needed for rapid departure from the area. The Academy is naturally closed and classes have been cancelled."

"I'll send the Third Company to help laying down defenses. Many of them are line earth mages and they're the best sapper unit we have." Gramont said, moving a blue piece on the map. The company was currently at La Rochelle repairing the airfields, and it would take them three days to reach the Academy leaving 4 days to work on the defenses.

"Recall Duchess de la Valliere." Queen Marianne ordered. "Send the fastest bird we have. No doubt she's going to want to have words with her youngest."

"Besides Duchess de la Valliere, do we have anyone else capable of going toe to toe with that Dragon?" One of the generals asked. Marianne caught the eye of Jean, who sighed before nodding.

"We'll deploy Fire Snake, a square class fire mage to assist Karin."

"You're making the same mistake we made earlier when making this report. You're all forgetting about the Knight, the Dragon's master." Jean said.

Immediately the room quieted as they processed that information. "What's the chances the Knight is stronger than the Dragon?" Gramont asked hesitantly.

"Almost certain." Osmond said dourly. "We have no idea what he can do besides what he has shown us, and even that I have no idea what it is. I first thought it might be some sort of Elvish or Firstborn magic, but now I'm more inclined to believe that it's some form of Lost magic."

"Well with a dragon as a familiar, we can guess that he has some sort of affinity to Fire and wind, that would put his strength at line mage at the very least."

"Square is more likely." Gramont said. "Let's assume he's at square level and prepare accordingly." Moving three more pieces he placed them within the academy's walls as well as moving several other pieces to surround the school. "Dragon, Griffin, and Manticore knights should patrol the school and surrounding areas, but at least one of those Orders needs to be there at all times. It's impossible to mobilize all our forces within a week, but we can divert two battalions to the surrounding areas, each battalion would bring with it 4 batteries so that would be 48 field pieces a mix of 12 and 6 pounders with accompanying ammunition."

"I hate to do this but I'll play devil's advocate. Are we really going to war against a single opponent? I mean our enemy is a noble of another country, and last I checked it was illegal to summon a noble as a familiar. To force him to become a familiar would be like enslaving him, and I need not mention that Brimir himself was against slavery." Cardinal Mazarin said. "Should we not just punish Ms. Valliere thus sparing us any military action and possibly the wrath of this dragon."

"I've always found that somewhat hypocritical that Brimir was so against slavery yet at the same time the Gandalfr was a person not a creature and thus under his rule."

"You're not the only one Princess. The idea of slavery has long been debated by the College of Cardinals." Mazarin reassured. "On one hand we have the familiar summoning ceremony a sacred rite that bonds a mage to their chosen partner. On the other Ms. Valliere summoned up a noble and putting him under her command would be akin to slavery."

"That's if. If we can subdue them." Jean and Osmond said gravely.

"Surely you don't think that they can escape with all our forces there? I'm sure they would parlay once they see the strength opposing them."

"All the strength we have means nothing if they can paralyze all of us with a single action. I suggest you forgo the standard army troops and gather as many mages and artillery pieces you can. Then when it arrives in the Academy we bombard it until naught but a speck remains." Philippe said. Hearing cries of protest he held up his hands. "You haven't faced it, that dragon is unnatural. I'm sure Osmond and Jean would tell you the same thing, but just being around it feels like Death is closing in on you."

* * *

Meanwhile our favorite Aspect of Death was laid out on the back of his dragon, drinking from a bottle of wine that he had 'liberated' from one of the noble's manor houses. Honestly it wasn't his fault that Arastel dozed off while flying and crashed into their home. He even offered to fix the damage for once.

But noooooooo. That pink haired woman had decided to chase after him with a manticore. Damn for a mortal her magic stung, not enough to cause actual damage but it felt like someone had poked him in a fleshy spot with a needle. In the end he'd actually had to fight her, releasing his power for just a moment. It was more than enough to knock her out, and as punishment he'd set her hair to randomly change colors, as well as leaving her tied up naked and hanging from the rafters of her Great Hall. He'd also left her manticore tied up and gift wrapped messing with it's voice so that instead of a roar it would be a little cat's meow.

She'd been useful for information though, and he now knew that he was close to the Tristain/Germania border, specifically the Black Forest. Dangerous creatures lurked the woods, but on the Germanian side deer was a plenty. That was why Arastel and him were currently winging it over the massive expanse of trees.

"I can smell something deer-like." Arastel grinned.

"Deer-like?" He asked, sitting up and conjuring a field glass. Peering through it he saw what looked like deer grazing. "Aye. They sure look like deer. Why don't you feast on this lot, I'm going to head into the forest for a bit. Send up fire if you need me." Saying that he rolled his shoulders, feeling a bit of discomfort as six pairs of black feathered wings sprouted from his back. With a crisp salute to Arastel, he ran down his back and using his tail as a springboard launched himself into the air. As he dove down, he saw Arastel doing the same, diving at his prey from up high, his dark shadow growing larger and larger.

With a mighty crash Arastel crashed into the ground a pair of deer gripped in each of his claws. Roaring in triumph he began to feast, his emotions pouring over the bond that they shared. " _By Ouroboros these things taste good!"_

He suppressed their connection, not wanting to hear anything else, as he opened his wings, and gently glided to the forest floor."Time to find dinner." Then he grinned. "It's been awhile since I've been in the mortal world and needed to eat. I wonder if my cooking is still as good as it was before I ascended."

Saying that, he conjured himself a bow and a quiver full of arrows. Even being near omnipotent didn't allow him to conjure food, only Life was allowed to do that as such things fell under her domain. A quick thought silenced his footsteps, masked his smell and lastly hid his presence unless you were directly looking at him. Savagely grinning he began stalking the forest looking for food. Along the way he came across what he guessed to be goblins, about a village full of them. Each of the green skinned monsters was about 4 to 4.5 feet high, had squashed faces reminiscent of a pug with long noses and a mouth filled with shard vicious looking teeth. In the back of his mind he wondered if this was what the children of a goblin and Pansy Parkinson would've looked like. The most distinguishing feature though were the necklaces that they were wearing. Some were nothing more than braided cords filled with teeth, others filled with teeth and most disturbingly the skulls of children. Being Death he saw the end of each of them, and he'd gotten over such things ages ago lest he become insane over the guilt. People, even children, died. There was no other way around it, and it was his duty to make sure that the balance between Life and Death was maintained at all times.

One of the reasons he had a sneaking suspicion he was even allowed to materialize himself on this plane of existence was that something was about to throw a wrench in the Fate's plans for balance. Either way he was here now and he was going to enjoy himself until something occurred. Hopefully there would be no crazy necromantic artifact he would have to deal with in the future. He hated those with a burning passion and made it a point to take out his frustrations on any who thought to cheat him out of his souls.

Anyways even though he had gotten over the fact that people died, he still harbored a great dislike for those who killed children. With a lazy flick of his wrist a razor segmented whip dropped into his hand. Humming to himself as he made short work of the goblins, before incinerating the entire village, careful not to start a forest fire. Gone were the times when he accidentally caused raging holocausts when trying to light simple matches, the paperwork needed for those unauthorized deaths had been a bitch to fill out, and the scolding he got from his counterpart and from the various other Aspects had not been worth the brief pleasure of seeing the world burn.

Anyways strolling merrily, the fires licking at his heels as he left the wreckage of the village, he went in search of dinner. Now that he thought about it, lighting part of the forest on fire seemed counterproductive as everything was sure to run away. Sinking into depression, his stomach rumbling he cursed Fate swearing to devour her sweets next time he came upon them. Sighing to himself, he gathered his energy and with a static sound disappeared from the area only to reappear several miles deeper into the forest, and unfortunately right into another goblin village. Unfortunate not for him but the goblins who were slaughtered even faster than the previous village.

"I'm hungry." He grumbled to himself, his stomach growling once more. He was starting to miss the Infinite Realm for no other reason than he fed off the energy and had no need to eat regular food. "Fortune, you lesser Aspect of Fate, if you can hear me please by all that's infinite let me stumble across something to eat." The Aspect must've been listening to him, as no sooner than he said the words did a pack of deer dart in front of him. "Fortune you glorious bastard, when I get back I'm going to dethrone that tyrant Fate and install you as the new one."

With practiced ease he unslung his bow and quickly let loose a trio of arrows imbued with the concept of Death. A single graze was all that was needed as the trio of deer dropped to the ground lifeless.

Unfortunately Fortune must've been accompanied by his sibling Misfortune, because as soon as the deer fell dead an arrow buried itself an inch from his ear. "Shit!" He cursed, diving to the ground, avoiding another arrow. While they wouldn't kill him, he would never suggest having part of your head regrown. Not only was it disgusting if not oddly fascinating to watch, but it was also damn painful. Throwing up a quick shield, he stopped any more of the pesky arrows from reaching him, before he summoned the archer towards him. A group of men, Nobles by their dress, were hauled off their feet and hurtled towards him. Collapsing into a pile he snapped his fingers, incinerating their weapons and foci. "Now it's not nice to shoot people. Don't you know that you're supposed to love your neighbor, not turn them into a pin cushion."

"You're trespassing on King's Land. It's illegal for any commoners to hunt on these lands." One of the nobles said. He was dressed differently than the other. While his clothes were clearly tailored to fit him, and made from fine and strong cloth, they were much more utilitarian and were slightly frayed at the end of the cuffs showing hard wear.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't nobles users of magic?" He asked summoning a ball of hellish flames in the palm of his hand. "Well I'm not a noble so I reject your reality and substitute my own."

Turning his back on the captured nobles he snapped his fingers flinging each one into a tree and sticking them to it. "Now since you decided to use me as target practice I think it's only fair that I return the favor." Grinning madly he knocked an arrow to his bow and brought it to full draw. "Scream for me piggies."


End file.
